Beyond The Papermill
by Jonouchi Katsuya
Summary: Malik is an exchange student from Egypt and makes fast friends with Ryou. When they start messing with the occult, they could have never guessed the consequences of their actions.


**A/N: This is AU. Malik is OOC (because he is basically Namu). This fic is set in fictional Camas. Some town arrangements have been changed for convenience. A few facts about Camas have been changed to allow for the Yugioh universe to be present and this fic to happen more smoothly. Obviously this is fiction.**

**Malik is speaking French when his speech is in italics.  
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The first thing you notice about Camas, is the smell. It stinks. You cover your nose and ask "Where is that smell coming from?" or even more simply "Who farted?" but the facts were this, no one farted, and that smell comes from the paper mill. Despite the odor, the people of Camas love to live there for the most part. The more adventurous types often move away, only wishing to come back to the small town they grew up in to raise their children.

However, as much as Ryou knew this about the people of Camas, he couldn't help but feel like the odd one out. Picnics and BBQs. He never got invited. Camas Days? He didn't really see the point in the games of baseball. The parade wasn't that bad. He got free toilet paper out of it every year. The only thing he definitively enjoyed however was the occasional weird shop that came there for the day's festivities. Especially the more supernatural ones with books and charms that both warded off and invited spirits of the dead. But that was summer and this was fall.

Although Ryou was only 16 years old, he had already experienced a fair amount of tragedy in his life. When Ryou was small, his mother passed away. His father never really got around to telling him why. She was just sick. That is all. The second person he lost, was his beloved older sister. She was in a car, on her way to soccer practice when everything went wrong. Everyone in town thought that Ryou had a curse on him and his whole family. They avoided him mostly. And if they weren't avoiding him, they were teasing him relentlessly about what his father did for a living.

Ryou practically lived in a morgue. His father ran the funeral home that was next door to his actual home. Kept it pristine and never had time for Ryou in between studying about dead things, learning dead languages, what make-up would look best on the old granny down the street- Ryou thought that was kind of creepy but somehow, utterly normal.

In class there was some talk about the foreign exchange student that would be coming to join them any minute. He was supposed to be from Egypt. The whole class was buzzing about mummies and pyramids- more importantly wondered if he was even a Christian. Ryou couldn't help but be excited and curious if the foreign exchange student would be interested in the occult or even just discussing his culture with him. Ryou sighed to himself, but the minute anyone of these people talks to him, he is going to think I'm just the town freak. With his hopes of making a new friend dashed before the new student even walked in the door, Ryou decided to do some of his homework early.

Ryou heard the classroom door click open. A boy with dyed blond hair, a lavender shirt, and cargo pants stood in front of the classroom. The boy smiled sheepishly and waved to everyone. Ryou went back to doing his homework.

"Introduce yourself. Don't be shy. Just say your name, where you are from. And maybe something else about yourself?"

"Hi, I am Malik. I am from Egypt. I like... umm" Malik girlishly curled his hair behind his ear.

"What other languages do you speak?"

Malik thought about the translation in his head for a moment before saying, "Arabic and French. But I fully understand English. Hard to speak sometimes."

Though Malik was not what the class was expecting, he was still cool because he was the exchange student, if only with the girls in class. The teacher nodded at Malik, then began to flip through a seating chart without bothering to look at the only available place to sit in the classroom. "Sit towards the back by Ryou. Ryou, raise your hand so he can see who you are."

Ryou continued to work on the night's homework assignment.

"Ryou!" the teacher snapped.

Ryou snapped to attention and looked up at the teacher in bewilderment before making a sharp guess as to what he was supposed to do by raising his hand. He watched Malik as he came to his seat. Malik sat nervously at the desk.

"If you need any help Malik, Ryou will help you. Now on with today's lesson..."

Ryou tuned her out. He already knew this stuff. He had looked ahead on his homework and was already almost finished.

Malik listened to the teacher best he could. As much English as he knew, as much as he had studied, as much as he had watched the Disney Channel, nothing could have prepared him for the amount of not understanding a word of what the teacher was saying. She was talking too fast. She was saying the words completely differently than the teacher who was teaching him English back home. Worst of all, even though most of the students had their jackets off, Malik found himself snuggling back into his and still feeling very cold. It felt like winter and it was only October.

Malik looked over at what Ryou was doing, but when he did, Ryou shut his book on the paper he was writing. Their eyes met. Malik felt very embarrassed. "Oh, I'm sorry."

Ryou looked at him curiously. "For what?"

"For what? For what..." Malik went deep into thought. He tried to figure out how to answer him.

"What languages do you speak? I wasn't listening to you earlier," Ryou whispered.

"Arabic and French fluently. Still learning be better at English. I understand it is just hard to speak."

"_J'appelle Ryou et je sais parler français. You can speak French to me if you want._ "

"_Really?_" Malik smiled.

"Yes. Want me to help you with your homework?"

Malik nodded.

.

After school, Ryou walked Malik to the place he was staying at. It was up on Prune Hill; the nice neighborhood. But Marik was staying towards the lower middle of the hill (not as rich as the people who live at the top and just beyond), so Ryou didn't feel too awkward about sticking around to wait for Malik to get permission to hang out with him.

Ryou from then on marked it in his mind that this was Malik's home while he was away from home. He wasn't sure if he should refer to it has 'his house', seeing as how his actual home was far, far away. Maybe I should ask him if that is OK. Maybe that is rude... Ryou really liked the pillars that framed the doorway as well as the beautiful garden. He wondered how big Malik's basement was. Every house on Prune Hill has a basement and even most of the houses in Camas. He wondered if it was a finished basement because he had never been in one to know what they look like when complete. His musings stopped when Malik walked out of the house, closing the door behind him.

An awkward pause. Malik smiled. Ryou smiled in return. They laughed it off.

"_So how far away do you live?_" asked Malik.

"Um," Ryou looked over his shoulder than back at Malik, "Kinda far. Not really though" Ryou squinted his right eye.

Malik chuckled. "Lets go." He hooked his thumbs under the straps of his backpack.

On the way to Ryou's house, the clouds obscured the sun and turned everything to grey. Ryou looked over at Malik who was shivering in a coat. "It's cold." Malik said. He then felt a little embarrassed when it just dawned on him that Ryou wasn't even wearing a coat.

Ryou smiled. "It is kinda warm for this time of year."

"_Feels like winter; the coldest months_."

.

After a 45 minute long walk, Ryou stopped in front of the small white house next to "Bakura's Funeral Home".

"So, this is it." Ryou said.

Ryou walked up two steps and opened the door. "Your home is really nice," said Malik.

A warm feeling crept up inside him. "Thanks." Ryou couldn't remember the last time someone had come to his home. Since his mother and sister passed away, rumors had spread across town that there was a curse on the Bakura family. On top of that, for an unknown reason, Ryou's hair prematurely turned white when he hit puberty. It was easy to believe he had a curse on him.

Ryou walked into the house, Malik followed. The first things that Malik noticed were the taxoderm animals. There were a couple of cats, a large collection of birds, some squirrels, as well as some other animals. The second were masks from all around the world. The front room was cluttered. Ryou looked back at Malik. "Just advert your eyes until you get to my room. It is kinda..."

Malik nodded.

.

Ryou dropped his bag and plopped himself on the floor. Malik sat down before removing his bag. Ryou felt his heart pound. He was a bundle of nerves. He didn't know what to say but "OK, pull out your homework and lets get started."

Malik pulled out his book and assignment but found his eyes wonder around Ryou's room. It was small, but a neat well organized room. "_This room isn't like the rest of the house_."

"Well, my dad is kind of a mess like that." Ryou was quick to pawn off all the weird on to his father.

"Oh? I really like the way the rest of the house is. I found the stuff to be very... cool?"

Ryou blinked a few times. This person thought his dad's stuff was cool. Well, Ryou did too, sorta. He was more embarrassed about it than anything else. People aren't normally attracted to dead things as a rule. It scared them. Made them think he was a freak. But Malik was cool with this? A broad smile graced his face.

"Well, I guess I should confess..." Ryou scratched the back of his head, "I kind of think it is cool too. I just didn't want you to think I was a weirdo."

Malik tilted his head. "Weirdo? Weird-oh..." he pronounced. "Weird person?"  
>Ryou nodded. "Sorry for the slang. I will do my best to try to avoid it."<p>

"Oh no. Please don't. It will help me understand I don't think you are weird."

Ryou blushed. "Well, if you don't think so... want me to show you something cool?"

"_What is it_?" Malik asked.

Ryou looked around. "OK, but you can't tell anyone! My dad gave it to me for my birthday."

Malik stood up as Ryou walked to a chestnut cabinet in his room. He tried to peak at what all was in there. Ryou closed the door slightly to hide what was in there. "Don't look!" Ryou laughed playfully. He was just so excited to be able to show someone this. From the cabinet, Ryou pulled out a clear box with a large golden ring inside. Malik looked at it in aw. "My dad went on a trip to Egypt once and this is what he brought back. My dad is friends with a lot of archaeologists, he used to be one. He stopped after mom died though..."

A sudden look of sadness flashed on Malik's face. "_My mom's dead too..._"

"Oh... I-I... I'm sorry."

"_Don't worry about me... my mother died giving birth to me. I never really knew her. And, my father... he passed away suddenly when I was 10."_

"You're an orphan? Malik, I-I don't know what to say."

"_Oh don't feel bad. My sister and adopted brother really loved me a whole lot. They raised me around ancient artifacts much like the one you are showing me now. It really looks like it belongs with these artifacts from home. Have you thought about- Oh I couldn't ask you to do that_."

"Do what?"

"We try to bring stuff like this back into the- back to Egypt..." Malik stumbled over his words.

"Tell you what, I promise that when I die, I will have it in my will that this goes back to Egypt."

"Seriously?"

Ryou nodded. "You are my friend after all."

"_I'm your friend? Your my first friend here._"

Ryou turned around and gently placed the artifact back in to his special cabinet. "Let's get working on that homework."

.

Ryou and Malik set down their trays at the lunch table. Leaning down Malik smelt the food. "Definitely not France."  
>They laughed.<p>

"So, last night, I was thinking after dad dropped you off at home, that we could maybe take a trip to the graveyard together?" Ryou had a face that said he was unsure as to what Malik would respond with.

"How old are the graves?"

"Some are from the 1800's," Ryou replied.

"Spooky? It sounds like a good time. Are we going to do anything while we are there?"

"Yeah. Spooky. Good word. Surprised you would actually want to go to that place. As for something to do..." Ryou took a bite of the school pizza. His eyes rolled up and to the right. He took a sip of milk. Malik waited patiently. "We could do a ceremony of some sort. Try to talk to spirits and stuff."

Malik got a light in his eyes. "Yes! Lets do it!"

.

Ryou slammed the door behind he and Malik in protest. He threw himself onto the bed. "Can't believe he won't let us go. It isn't like I haven't been out there before. Heck! I went there at 2am once and stayed the rest of the night. "

Malik quietly listened.

"This just makes no sense. My dad never seems to give- I am sorry. You shouldn't be seeing me this way."

"It is fine. I am fine," Malik assured.

Ryou noticed Malik's eyes lock on his special cabinet. Malik made a playful suggestion with his eyes. Ryou smiled and got off his bed. "That is a great idea Malik. I don't know why I never thought about doing that!" Ryou opened up the cabinet and pulled out the ring and set it on the floor. He then pulled out some white, black, and red candles. A book was next. It was thick and leather bound. Malik plopped on the floor and picked up the book. He took in the smell of it. "Mmmm, I love this smell!"

Ryou looked at him weird. "Give me that." Ryou snatched the book away from Marik. "Sorry." Ryou put on his best apologetic face, "I- Just... These are just my notes on the occult. Not really used to having friends." Ryou hung his head.

"It is alright. I don't like it when people just randomly touch my stuff either."

Ryou nodded and smiled. "I know the general areas memorized for just about anything we need." He opened the book and started flipping through pages."Lets see... _séance... séance_... where did it go? I normally sticky note this stuff. Ah! here it is." Malik scooched closer to Ryou so he could try to read over Ryou's shoulder. Ryou started mumbling some of the words he was reading "Many ways to conduct a saaaayyy... and... da da duh. Holding hand creating a circle is the most important and consistent part of these rituals some people light candles others... not. So OK. I am going to leave it up to you. How should we do this. Should we light candles, chant something that rhymes and hold hands, should we be still and sit, or do we get up and spin?"

"Well, _séance_ would imply sitting down."

Ryou laughed. "True. True."

"_We should hold hands and just, try to talk to the spirit._"

"So, simple?"

"_Yeah. Maybe light a candle so if the spirit doesn't want to talk he or she can give us a sign_."

Ryou got up and started searching through a drawer. He pulled out a lighter and a candle holder. "Good idea." Ryou shoved the candle into the holder and quickly lit the candle. After that, he got up and shut off the light.

Ryou sat back down in front of the candle and grabbed onto Malik's outstretched hands. "OK, whatever happens, don't let go." Ryou emphasized each word. Malik looked down at the ominous artifact. The eye in the center stared right through him. Ryou could see that Malik was getting scared. "Malik, it is OK." Ryou smiled to reassure him.

Malik nodded, still not sure if they should be doing this.

"So lets take a deep breath and concentrate on attracting a spirit that may be haunting this ring, or even just these halls. We should ask them who is the owner of this ring."

Malik's attitude towards their experiment changed once more. Ryou noticed that he seemed visually excited to find this stuff out from BEYOND.

The boys took a deep breath and concentrated. Another, and concentrated. Their breathing was perfectly in time, riding on the same wave. Their heads were facing down for what seemed like a long time. Something about this made him feel extremely connected with Malik. It made him feel butterflies in his stomach, holding hands with him. But something switched in his mind. A spasm of the brain. He looked upward and began to speak, but he was unsure as to what he was really saying.

"Spirit of the ring. Spirit of the ring, I call upon you. I call upon the darkness to aid me in contacting you through this treasure of Egypt. If you are here please give us a sign!" Ryou said.

Malik was scared but he kept hold of Ryou's hands. Malik felt as his hands began to sweat. Malik looked around the dark room.

"Oh spirit! Spirit! Please tell us who was the owner of this ring. Tell us your secrets. If you are unable to speak, please give us a sign by putting out the candle!"

Malik felt even more fear. He felt something touch him. "Ryou, something touched me!"

"Thank you spirit for giving us a sign. Can you find a way to speak to us? Please if you can find a way to speak to us!" Ryou's voice seemed to boom in Malik's ears. Heart beat faster. He swore he could hear Ryou's heart as well.

"Ryou we should stop...-" Ryou's body suddenly went limp. "Ryou? Ryou!"

Malik let go of Ryou's hands and grabbed his shoulders. "Ryou, are you alright? Wake up!"

Small noises were coming from Ryou's mouth. It was... laughter. Malik punch Ryou in the chest. "You jerk!"

"I got you so good!" Ryou said laughing.

"_No, Ryou, I was really scared something happened!_ " As Malik said this, he realized something had. Something wasn't right. "Did you touch me?"

A devious look in Ryou's eyes, "What if I did?"

"You aren't Ryou..." Malik backed up into a kneeling position.

"I'm Ryou now." A smirk was plastered on his face. It seemed like he cut that smile from somewhere else. A macabre sight. He watched on as the spirit who was possessing his friend, pulled the ring out of it's clear box and placed the chain over his neck. Better.

Malik shook his head. "No, you're not."

Bakura raised an eyebrow and and leaned closer to Malik. Malik forced his legs out from under himself and leaned back further. In response, Bakura did what was natural, lunge forward and grab Malik by the shoulders. "But you see, I am your friend. I will be guiding you far away from this world. A dark place." Bakura licked Malik's face. Malik was paralyzed with fear. "Hm. I should light this entire house on fire, and watch as you parish in it."

"No! Please!" Malik looked at the ring right in front of him. "There are more items like that aren't there? Is that what you want? I know where more are. I can help you. Just don't kill me."

Bakura leaned in close once more. Malik stayed frozen. "Where?"

**A/Ns: First off, thanks for reading this. I am probably not going to finish what I started here. I might? **

**In defense of using the Disney Channel as something Malik would watch: in Africa, the Disney Channel is really, really popular. Hannah Montana happens to be one of the most watched shows.**


End file.
